Romancing the Melody
by Averta
Summary: Fukase, an outcast and bully victim at school, has a secret. He has a crush on Oliver, the class representative and star soprano. But with Gakupo and Kaito threatening to expose their secret, and with the world against their relationship, the only way they can find comfort is the joy of music...
1. My Secret

They say that everybody was born for a reason. Everyone has a purpose, something that would change the future by their own presence. I believed that at one point, I would be needed for this world, to do something everyone will admire.

But I misunderstood that by a long shot.

I thought it would affect everyone else, but it only affected me.

"Look at his face, I would kill myself if I looked like that."

"What a bum, he can't even get decent grades."

"Why does he even bother to come here?"

The comments stabbed me like a knife, making my chest hurt. I clenched my books tightly to my chest, trying my best to ignore the comments, but that was all I could notice. The insults. The pain.

I let my red hair hang over my eyes, one normal, the other blind. Maybe if I let my hair grow long and cover my eyes and nose, then no one would notice me. I could just get through high school peacefully.

"Hey, Fukase."

An arm slung over my shoulder, and long purple hair hang over the right side of my body. I recognized that purple hair anywhere.

"Hey, Gakupo." I grumbled, averting my gaze.

His best friend (and partner in crime), Kaito, walked on my left, staring at the disfigured left side of my face and blind eye. He smirked, his handsome face looking twisted with glee.

"Long time no see," he said, his hands in his pockets.

"Hey, I was thinking," Gakupo sneered, his signal that he was going to throw in an insult. "Maybe you could pay for games at the arcade? After all, you have _plenty_ of money."

He cackled at his insult, as I was forced to walk with them. I prayed that they would just go away and leave me alone.

"We need to find some use for this bum, after all, why is he here in the first place?" Kaito added, his eyes narrowing with an evil gleam.

 _I don't wanna deal with their crap._

"Gakupo, Kaito, I need to get to class, so go away." I warned, looking for my locker in the midist of the dozens lined on the wall.

"What did you say?"

I flinched, and realized that Gakupo was glaring at me with rage, his fists clenched. Not a good sign.

I desperately looked around for somewhere to run, and then spotted Kagamine Rin and Len down the hallway.

"Hey Len! Hi Rin!"

They were almost like the bully police, always after Gakupo and Kaito and trying to catch them doing their evil schemes. The second they spotted them, Gakupo and Kaito darted to who-knows-where. Even though Rin and Len were adorable, they had a temper like you've never seen.

"Hi Fukase!" Rin exclaimed running towards me as I opened my locker. "Are you going to choir?"

"Yeah, I just need to put my books away."

Once I was empty-handed and my locker was closed, with lock secure, we walked together to the choir room.

As we walked, I noticed that Len looked bothered by something. He was staring at the lockers, deep in thought.

"What's wrong Len?" I asked.

"Well..." he mumbled, looking at me with a serious expression, and using his arms as a headrest. "I know that you've been trying to stand up to yourself, but you need to tell a teacher. Unless if you tell someone, Gakupo and Kaito will just keep bullying you."

 _Here we go again._ I thought, exasperated with this conversation.

"Len's right. If you don't stop them, they're gonna hurt you." Rin added.

I knew that I needed to tell someone. But there was a reason I wasn't telling anyone about me being bullied.

There is someone I like.

I desperately want to impress them by standing up to Gakupo and Kaito, because they're being bullied by them as well. I want to catch the bullies when they're making fun of them, and impress them but also scare away Gakupo and Kaito for good.

"Hey, Fukase!"

I flinched from disturbance, and realized that we were at the choir room. We walked in, and there were four rows of chairs placed in the classroom, several students already sitting down and talking within the last few minutes before class.

Then, I spotted Yohio and Kyo sitting together, talking. However my crush wasn't with them. That was odd. They're the class representative, they are expected to be early to classes.

I shrugged it off, and sat down in the way back, separate from the rest of the students, and I waited for time to pass.

Choir was, by far, my favorite class. I usually got good grades, and it was the one class where I was admired for something about me. I was a pretty good Alto and Baritone, so the teacher would want me to try out for a solo, or she would point out a part in a song that I sang beautifully. And it was the one class that I could forget about my disfigured face and blind left eye.

Finally, I heard our teacher's high heels on the tile floor, and she stood at the front of the classroom, with my crush, who was blushing adorably. I couldn't help but admire that they could stand at the front of the classroom and not have to worry about people judging them based on looks.

Our teacher did attendance, as my crush sat down with Yohio and Kyo, and I waited for the singing. That was all I waited for in my school day, or my life overall.

"Me and your class representative had a little talk before class, and we decided on the songs we'll sing for the spring concert in April. As I speak, there are copies of the lyrics and notes being passed out."

I saw Miku pass out piles of sheet music, the copies being passed down throughout the class. Kaito and Gakupo were polite with her, trying to get her to ask one of them out. Typical, almost every guy in our school had a crush on that girl. From the bright blue ponytails to the high-pitched voice, she was the ideal girlfriend. She even had a great personality. Those were all things people would never notice about me, or even think at the sight of me.

Finally, the copies were passed to me, and I was given seven different songs that needed to be practiced. I flipped through, and saw a couple of duets and solos that would have to be filled in. Several times I had considered doing one, but I had the fear of scaring everyone off if I showed up on stage in front of an entire audience.

"These are the songs that will be practiced for the next two and a half months, and during that time we'll determine who has a solo or duet, and what part you have, whether it's a soprano, alto, tenor, baritone, or bass." The teacher explained, opening her own copy of the sheet music.

Then, my crush walked up to the piano at the front of the room, and examined the notes on the pages given to him.

"Now, everyone open to the first page of..."

I wasn't listening anymore. I knew how it worked when we got new songs. I wanted to admire my crush's skill on the piano, as they plucked the keys to produce the beautiful sound. I loved pianos, I always wanted to learn how to play, but I was never given the opportunity to.

Everyone stood up, looked at the lyrics, and started singing either the alto or soprano part, based on if they were a girl or boy. I was only singing half-heartedly, when I was impressed that my crush could hit every right note as we sang, keeping up with the tempo, adding in perfect dynamics and even singing along with us.

I wanted to sing by Oliver's side. So desperately, I wanted to feel the comfort of song as a duet, the two of us together. Me with the lower notes, him with the higher and the piano. A perfect melody.

Unfortunately, class ended sooner than I realized, and we had to pass in the copies of sheet music and leave the classroom.

My next class was science, my least favorite. I always struggled to get a decent grade, and none of it made sense. I was used to getting tutors and having to retake tests and getting extra practice.

 _Shoot, we have homework due today!_

I searched in my locker for my science homework, but I couldn't find it, and then I heard the bell ring, a warning that class was going to start in one minute.

"Screw it."

I slammed my locker shut and ran to the science room, with only my textbook, pencil case, and notebook.

The bell was merciless today, because the second I stepped into the classroom the bell rang, and I had to sprint to my seat and look casual before the teacher arrived. Thankfully, I was given enough time to put my supplies away and open my textbook before the teacher took attendance.

 _Please don't mention the homework!!_

After attendance, he explained our concept today and our assignment, nothing about homework.

 _Maybe I got the due date wrong._

He split us into groups for a lab, and we all had to do different chemical reactions and answer a couple of questions, nothing special. Just our science teacher trying to give himself the least amount of work as possible.

Me and my group managed to finish the lab within the class timeframe, and we turned it in. We still had about twenty minutes of class left, so we were allowed to work on other homework or study for the next test. I opened my textbook and read through the chapter we were learning about, but I still couldn't keep my mind off of the homework assignment.

In fifteen minutes, the other groups had finished and were just hanging out. The teacher had said nothing.

 _I must've gotten the due date wrong, he would've mentioned it by now._

 _"Briiiiing!!"_

The bell rang, signaling the end of class. Everyone stood up, and then my worst fear happened.

"Class dismissed, and turn in your homework assignment before you leave." He said, walking to the doorway and waiting for students to turn in the homework.

 _Crap, what am I supposed to do?!_

I tried to use my tactic of blending in with the line of students, and pass by him without him noticing.

As he neared me, I tried as best I could to look casual, and get past him without being noticed.

"Fukase, where is you're homework?" He asked, getting my attention.

I stopped, and looked at him, embarrassed.

"I... uh... don't have it?" I said, probably the lamest excuse I could've thought of.

He frowned, annoyed with my terrible grades and lack of time management with assignments. He took the assignments from the rest of the students, and while they went on to their last class of the day, I had to stay behind. I was used to this routine, but today it bothered me because it was close to the end of the day and I just wanted school to be over.

"Fukase," he said, looking through his computer to my grades, and showing me my average. In the midist of assignments, tests, and projects, there was a mix of Cs, Ds, and Fs. And my overall grade was a D-, not good.

"You haven't been keeping up with the class. Lately, your grade average has been in the Ds. If your grades don't improve, I won't be able to allow you to continue to the next grade next year. I've talked with other teachers, and we got you a tutor to help you after school with your assignments and studying." He explained, dead serious.

This had to be my umpteenth tutor. I sighed. Another several hours of wasting time. Another tutor chosen, another tutor gone, no good grades.

"And since you've gone through several tutors, we decided to give you the class representative, the one with top grades. After school today, you'll meet him in the library and have daily tutoring sessions until improvement." He added, and he stood up from his desk, and let me go on to my next class.

 _D-did he just say class representative?!_

"Yesssss!" I whispered, making an air fist bump once I was in the hallway.

I was going to be having tutoring sessions with _Oliver_ , my crush!

"Good grades, here I come!!" I exclaimed, running to my next class.

The last class of the day took forever to finish, but I got through without any trouble. It was just a lecture and another assignment, and I figured that with Oliver as my tutor, he could help me take notes. Such things were never skills that I could achieve anything in not matter how hard I tried.

I heard the last bell ring, and all the students rushed to the buses or towards home. On the other hand, I gathered up my supplies, and walked to the library. One of the few things I liked about tutoring was the peace and quiet after school ends. No bullies, no loud kids, just quiet.

I passed the gym along the way, and noticed that they were decorating it, putting up tables and blowing balloons.

 _Is there a dance or something?_

"F-fukase!"

I turned towards the voice, and saw Oliver in front of the library, already prepared. I felt a blush creep into my cheeks, but I refused to show it.

"Coming."

One of the tables already had a notebook and a few pencils there, with what looked like a list written on the page that was open.

We sat down, and then awkwardness. I waited for him to start talking, but he flipped through his notebook first, looking for an open page. I stared at him all the while, and I could tell that he was getting nervous and shy, it was adorable.

"S-so, we'll be going over each of your topics, and I'll help you with homework and notes, and if you have any questions, you're free to ask." He stammered, I couldn't help but smile. Most would've moaned while saying that, but he sounded happy to help me.

"Okay." I replied, opening my science textbook and notebook.

He found a fresh page in his notebook, and he started explaining the chapter and concepts simply, a way that I could understand it. For the first time in weeks, I actually understood the topic. I even jot down a couple of notes. After while, he glanced at my notes, and we both realized how messy and unorganized they were.

"I could show you how to write down notes for additional studying, if you'd like." He suggested.

"Sure, Oliver."

He seemed surprised that I mentioned his name at the end of the sentence, and he looked flattered by my light sense of respect. But I felt the blush creep into my cheeks again, that was probably the first time I had spoken his name to him.

I felt like I had to break the silence before it got embarrassing, and I asked, "So, is there some kinda dance tonight or something? I saw them decorating the gym."

"Yeah, the valentines dance. We couldn't arrange it on Valentine's Day, so we had to reschedule it."

We didn't say anything, the tension in the atmosphere rose to awkward levels, and then he broke the silence, and Oliver helped me write notes, and then we moved on to the next subject, math.

"Do you know how many people are going?" I asked, pulling out my math supplies.

"Most of the high school, but also those who have a date to go with. But the only reason I have to stay is to arrange it and help supervise and clean up. I was the only one who took the job to arrange the dance, so I kinda was disappointed that I couldn't have fun there tonight." He answered, flipping to a fresh page in his notebook.

 _Maybe next year... if I mustered the courage, I could ask you to go with me._

"Then, I guess in a sense, it was sort of a good thing you're my tutor today?" I said, which came out as a mumble.

Oliver smiled gently, and whispered, "Yeah."

 _He is so cute._

My face felt like a million degrees, and I realized I was blushing. _Again._

 _Don't let him see!_

I used my textbook to cover my face, and hoped that he didn't notice. I didn't want him to know that I liked him, that I was gay, not yet. Now wasn't the right time, and I wasn't prepared to get rejected.

"Um, you okay?" He asked, attempting to look at me behind the textbook, but couldn't with his short stature.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine."

Once I got my cool, I put down the textbook, and we quickly finished our session before I could blush again. Surprisingly, we made a lot of progress, and lots of concepts from different classes made sense. I didn't doubt that within a few weeks, my grades would get better.

Before I knew it, it was six o' clock, and I had to go home.

"Well, thank you Oliver, for everything." I said packing up my textbooks and notebooks.

"You're welcome."

Suddenly, I could hear music pounding in my ears, which sounded like it was coming from out of the library.

"Did the dance start already?"

"Yeah. Do you want to see it?"

Although I usually had no interest in school events, I figured I had nothing else to do. I nodded, and we left the library to the gym.

 _For some reason, I feel like I'm going with Oliver to the dance, like we're dating._

I knew it would likely never happen, but the fantasy of it was nice.

It was a dream that I could depend on to keep my spirit joyful through my school days.

 **End of chapter one.**

 ** _Hello readers, this is Averta! This is my first FanFiction, so I hope it wasn't too bad in the first chapter. I hope the next chapter will come out in a week or so, but I will try to publish it as soon as I can. But once September comes, it'll be harder to publish with homework, sports, school, etc. And if I end up publishing a chapter once a month, I'll try to publish several on breaks or between quarters._**

 ** _Anyways, thanks for reading the first chapter of Romancing the Melody!_**


	2. Tragedy

"Whoa."

The gym was lathered completely in pink, red, and white decorations. They went full out in balloons, confetti, streamers, and even had tablecloths at the snack bar.

 _This is..._

I had no idea what I was missing. There was even a DJ, who was taking song request after song request, cranking up the volume and keeping everyone dancing with the explosive-like sound. And in the corner of the room, there was a backdrop for photos with your date.

"This is pretty cool, but how did the school scrap up enough money for this?" I asked, eyeing the DJ and his equipment.

"I had to invest a bit of money in it, and there's an entrance fee." He replied, trying to be heard over the loud music with his quiet voice.

Then, I spotted Gakupo and Kaito in the crowd, flirting with girls. I knew that the second they spot me, they would harass me like they always do. If I didn't get out of eyeshot, I would be screwed.

"H-hey, can we look around a bit? I've never been to a school dance before." I suggested, trying to find the most casual way to get out of sight of Gakupo and Kaito.

"Um, I guess?" He said, following me, trying to keep up in the crowd.

I found a corner by the DJ that was clear of anyone and was out of sight of Gakupo and Kaito. I leaned against the wall, and breathed a sigh of relief. I had nothing to look forward to after school, so this dance was my best bet to have a good time and avoid going back home to that distaster of a life.

Suddenly, something nudged my shoulder, and I turned to look at Oliver, who was trying to speak to me, straining to be heard over the music.

"I can't hear you!! What did you say?!" I yelled, attempting to ignore the music as best I could, but to no avail.

He leaned closer to my ear, trying to speak, and was just barely audible.

"Why are we hiding back here?!"

I turned my head towards his ear, and shouted back, "Gakupo and Kaito are here!! We need to stay out of their sight!!"

Oliver understood, and nodded. Fortunately (or unfortunately), we were both being bullied by Gakupo and Kaito, so hiding back here was the best decision for the both of us. Unless if they left or we found a spot in the gym where there were no girls, we were stuck here.

 _But I'm with Oliver!! It's a win-win! I can finally talk to him!_

Sort of.

We huddled in the corner, and tried to talk to each other whilst looking for somewhere to go in the gym. Unfortunately, everyone had a group and no one was willing to move around the room unless they were heading to the snack bar or restroom.

Oliver seemed to not be able to take it anymore, because he ran up to the DJ and made a song request. Then, the music was turned down, and a slow dance played on the speakers.

He walked back, coughing. His voice was not used to being strained to make loud noise.

"I couldn't take it anymore." He said, between coughs.

But, with the addition of slow dance music, it made my mind wander, thinking of us in a relationship. I felt a blush creep into my cheeks, and I turned away to hide it.

"What's wrong?" Oliver asked, his expression innocent and clueless. So cute.

"N-nothing! I need to go do something quick!" I exclaimed, heading to the restrooms.

"Wait!"

Before I could turn back around, I hear the sound of high heels behind me, and someone crying. I knew that the group was of girls, swiftly making their way through the gym.

I didn't stop in time. A small group of girls ran in the same direction I was, and I was pushed through the crowd. My feet slipped on the smooth gym floor, and I braved myself to crash on the hard wood.

"Fukase!"

A warm hand grasped mine, and was yanked with me as we toppled to the floor.

All I could hear was my pounding heart. My right eye could only see white stripes, like bandages. But my lips were sealed, something soft pressing against them.

 _W-what's going on...?_

My hand grasped for the floor to lift myself up, but I got a fistful of loose cloth, like that of a jacket, and my other hand was still clenched. My body had a weight holding it down. Then, trembling.

 _Please, not what I think it is. Please god don't let what I think happened happen._

But my pleas were too late.

I was kissing Oliver.

My mind was sent into mad panic, and scrambled to get up, but with Oliver on top of me, I couldn't do anything.

He was shocked as well, and he quickly got off of me, his face bright red. Even his cute features were plastered in shock.

"S-s-sorry! I'm so, so, sorry!"

He repeatedly apologized, but I was speechless. I couldn't react. My brain couldn't access the situation rationally.

 _This is crazy!! He thinks I like him! No, he_ knows _I like him! Now my life is ruined!!!_

I backed away to the wall, my cheeks now on fire. I couldn't hide the blushing now, we both couldn't hide it. What just occurred denied trying to hide any blushing or shock that we felt.

We sat like that for a solid minute, neither of us able move, or speak to the other. I couldn't imagine what was going through Oliver's mind. He had to be panicking too. Frantic, traumatized by what just occurred.

"I- I didn't mean to- I- I mean..."

I couldn't come up with the right words to apologize, but I knew that if I didn't do something, Gakupo and Kaito would eventually find us.

"I think I should go."

I stood, Oliver behind me, and we exited the gym, still red faced. When we reached the entrance to the school and stepped into the cool night air, I shivered. Even with my coat, I was cold.

"I'll see you tomorrow, bye." I said, walking to the sidewalk, and towards my house.

"W-wait!"

Oliver grabbed my hand, but immediately let go in embarrassment. His expression was sincere, and I couldn't see a trace of disgust or rage in his navy blue eye.

"I won't take what happened the wrong way. It won't affect anything, it was just an accident." He reassured me.

I smiled, gazing straight into his navy blue eye, now dazzling with happiness, the other covered in bandages. I felt a smile form on my lips.

"Okay. Good bye."

He let me go home after that.

The room reeked of alcohol, two bodies laid side by side on the old sofa, TV still on. The lights were off, but I could see their faces. Drunk themselves to sleep again.

I walked to the hallway and into my room. An empty dresser sat on the left side of the room, only collecting dust instead of warm clothes. My bed was near the window in front of me, the curtains drawn. A thin blanket and pillow were the only things on the mattress.

On the cracking and ruined wall above the bed was a single picture in a simple wooden frame. It was of me with mom, dad, and a girl from long ago. She had red hair and a red X across her nose, just like me. Her eyes were crimson, neither blind. She was dressed just like me, and we were holding hands, smiling.

 _Fukisa..._

I pulled the curtains away from the windows, the moonlight shining through the glass.

 _Much better._

The moonlight always eased my mind whenever I thought of Fukisa. She loved the starry sky and bright moon at night, so I would try to reenact the things we loved to do.

I guess the happiness had to end at one point, right?

 _"Fukase..."_

I could hear a nostalgic voice ring in my head, I tried to block it out. I didn't want to hear it anymore.

 _"Why did you do that? Are you ignoring me now?"_

A hand gripped my shoulder, and squeezed it with unbelievable force.

" _You did this to me, so why don't you look? It was all your fault, you should be ashamed."_

I turned my head out of guilt, and shrieked at the sight. It was Fukisa, her entire body covered in burns and blood, the disfigured face twisted into an insane smile.

 _"Look at it. See what you've done?"_

She walked in front of me, and stared at the left side of my face, where I was disfigured as well.

"I-I didn't mean to... F-Fukisa-"

Her body engulfed into flames, and disappeared into a pile of ashes.

"N-no... not again..."

A house appeared, the house of sweet childhood memories, burning. The fire crackled, as if to laugh at my suffering. Screams and cries were heard from inside, my sister's voice was inside the mass of flames.

"Stop!! Please, stop this!!" I screamed, collapsing to my knees and crying.

It went silent. But I could feel the presence of the soul that was consumed by those flames.

" _You can't forget me. I'm your flesh and blood, I'm your memories and emotions."_

S-stop..."

 _"I'm your twin."_

 **End of chapter two.**

 ** _Woo-hoo! A huge plot twist!_**

 ** _Averta here, and I'm so glad that I was able to publish this chapter! Because of all the rainstorms in the last few days, I haven't been able to get any internet connection, so I couldn't write any of the chapters T-T._**

 ** _But, luckily I went out with some family, and the restaurant had WiFi, so I could write and edit what I already had for the second chapter. And, I managed to get the chapter published on the promised date!_**

 ** _But, school starts next week for me, so I don't know if I will be able to publish future chapters on the promised date, because we aren't supposed to get our WiFi back until sometime next week. But, when we do get our WiFi back, I'll try to write longer and better chapters._**

 ** _Anyway, thank you readers for reading the second chapter of Romancing the Melody!_**


	3. Confession

It was eight long, agonizing years ago.

We used to have a big house, lots of money, and close ties to the rest of our family. Me and my sister used to take advantage of that, and we would have fun together as a family. But when me and Fukisa were playing, we were careless.

It was a warm summer day, and our family was having a party with some friends. Me and my sister were happy when we found out that there were kids our age to play with, so we played in our bedrooms with them while the adults talked in the living room and kitchen.

I can very vividly remember one of the kids suggesting that we play tag, but me and Fukisa were hesitant. Our parents were always very strict when it came to running or horseplay around the house. Not only that, they warned us that we could knock over things, like a vase, a candle, a plate, or even knock over someone.

But, we figured that since there were around ten of us, the adults wouldn't be too hard on us, and we could all carry the blame.

So, we decided on who was going to be It, and they gave us a ten second head start to get out of the room. With the grown ups in large groups in the kitchen, I could hide there, and avoid being seen.

But, one of the kids spotted me a couple of minutes later, and I started to run around the kitchen and living room as the person who was It chased me.

My mom was always loved the smell of candles, so there was one lit on the kitchen counter.

I sprinted along the counter, but accidentally knocked into the candle, and it hit the wooden floor.

Before I could tell my parents what happened, a blaze was consuming the kitchen, and complete chaos was unleashed. Even a fire extinguisher was useless at that point.

Someone called the fire department, and by the time they arrived, the house was engulfed in flames. We did a headcount, but there was one person missing.

Fukisa.

My twin sister was trapped in the fires of hell that had overtaken our home, and it was my fault.

An hour later, the house was left in ruins of ash, metal, and bricks. A firefighter managed to find Fukisa in the midst of the ruins, burned. She was dead.

Afterwards, we were rushed to the hospital. But, because of the chaos, I was pushed towards the flames during the escape, and the fire burned the left side of my body. When I left the hospital, the left side of my face was disfigured, and my left eye had gone blind.

My parents were depressed after my sister's funeral, and we dove into deep debt, and everything changed.

We lost our home, money, and close ties to family and friends. But, most importantly, I lost the person I had kept most dear to me since the day I was born.

"-se! Fukase!"

A hand waved in front of my face, disturbing me from my flashback. I pulled out my science notebook, and flipped to the same page as he had, keeping my eyes focused on the textbook.

Though we apologized, and even had a calm farewell, that didn't change the fact that we kissed. That was something that we both wished to forget.

"Fukase, are you okay? You've been really distracted." Oliver asked, his navy blue eye looking at me with concern.

"It's nothing..."

As if telepathically, he understood what I meant, and didn't say anything more until he started talking about science, with me reading through the textbook with him, listening to his explanations. It seemed that tutoring was longer than it was yesterday. I couldn't stop clicking my pen, over and over. And the clock was as if it was frozen, each second feeling like agonizingly long days.

When we moved on to the next subject, it was only three fifty. Only forty minutes had passed since the session began, and I felt my anxiety just completely consuming by my actions and focus.

The words in the textbook felt like they were shifting, and when I could read, I didn't understand what it was talking about. I was reading the words, but I wasn't putting together the sentences. Even when I reread it a dozen times, I only read words, and couldn't put together meanings and explanations in the sentences and paragraphs.

 _Wh-what the hell is wrong with me?!_

I stood up immediately, and looked at Oliver, almost unable to speak with a steady voice.

"I-I... uh... need to use the restroom. I'll be right back." I lied, walking straight towards the door of the library.

I heard a faint "okay..." in a high-pitched voice from behind me. I closed the door, and into the bathroom, pacing back and forth on the moist tiles.

 _What's going on?! Why am I so anxious?!_

I held out a pale hand in front of me, shaking uncontrollably with sweat dripping off my fingertips. I looked at my left hand as well, the disfigured limb shaking as well.

I could remember the pain I was in when my skin caught fire. It felt like a large mass of heat latched onto me, never letting go. It fed off of me, taking away flesh and blood as it's resource for power.

 _Don't think about it... don't think about it..._

But I couldn't stop. That night of hellfire haunted me. I could still feel that fire on my hand and face, consuming me, hurting me. My scream and other's echoing in my ears as the frantic escape left me with horrid scars. A reminder of my failure.

 _It's in the past... that fire isn't here anymore... calm down!!_

In my chest, I could feel my heartbeat increase to unimaginable speeds, making me feel like I had something that was trying to claw its way out of my chest.

"Fukase!"

I realized that Oliver was right behind me, yelling my name. Apparently, he had for a minute or two, trying to get my attention. How long had I been in the restroom before he had to come out here to get me?

"What's going on?!"

I kept my head turned away from him, trying to avoid from having another problem to make me hyperventilate even worse.

"Look at me!"

 _B-but I... I can't..._

Small arms wrapped around my stomach, just below my rib cage, making me freeze. Breathing didn't matter anymore.

 _He's hugging me... even after everything that happened...? Had he gone mad?_

"Fukase... what going on?" He whispered, audible through the deafening silence.

"I... I'm scared..."

His warmth against my back made my heart beat faster, and my breath catch in my throat.

"Is it... about _that_?" He mumbled, referring to what happened at the dance last night.

"I... I don't know anymore. Th-there was fire.. a-and burning, and my home... everything was..."

 _Gone._

There were no more words that were needed to be said.

"You were in a fire, weren't you? I'm so sorry..."

The arms around me tightened, his face buried in the ragged coat that covered my body.

 _Why are you sorry? I was the one who caused it. It was my fault that we lost everything, that we lost Fukisa..._

"Fukase, this maybe a shock to you, but..."

 _Go now. I can't take any more of this. My heart is beating so fast, and yet I'm not breathing. You're so warm, nothing compared to my weak, cold heart..._

"I like you."

 _What?_

But, why? The star soprano of our school, and class representative, likes _me_? I have nothing to offer. I was the one who brought disaster upon my family, and I have nothing to be admired about. My clothes were rags, and I had a disfigured left hand and face, and my left eye was blind. And my GPA was always low, nothing compared to his perfect scores.

"Why?" I mumbled, barely audible. "I'm nothing... I don't have anything that can be admired, why would you like me... at all?"

I heard a sigh, and then he replied, with bravery in his voice, "You're so much stronger than me. You can stand up to Kaito and Gakupo. I could never do that. All I do is run away, and I can't even talk to anyone about it. I want to have the strength you have..."

Something warm slid down my cheek, spilling from my eyes. I realized I was crying.

A sob escaped my throat, as I bent over, tears falling from my ugly face, with Oliver hugging me, completely silent.

 _I don't have... any strength at all..._

 **End of chapter three.**

 ** _I'm so excited! The story is taking such a huge turn!_**

 ** _We finally got our WiFi back, so I didn't have to rush this chapter! From now on, the chapters should be longer than the second chapter (and for rushing it, I apologize). And for those who've left reviews, I am so grateful for your support! Even though this is my first FanFiction, I think it's going pretty great so far, and at one point I might be able to start publishing more than just one fanfic at a time, but for now I'll stick with this one._**

 _And thank you to everyone for reading chapter three of Romancing the Melody!_


	4. Obstacles

"Fukase... do you feel the same way?"

I could barely ask the question, my heart and mind in a frantic state. Admitting something like that was so unlike me, but I felt that this was the right time. There was no Gakupo or Kaito to mock us.

Fukase seemed at loss for words. He only cried, almost as if he didn't even hear my question.

 _Did I make a wrong assumption? Should I try to take it back?_

"Oliver... I'm sorry..."

 _As I thought. He doesn't have any interest._

"I don't know if it would work."

I ended my embrace, and walked in front of him, trying to make him look at me.

"Why not? I mean... we could somehow make it work, right?"

He looked at the door, and then back at me, his eyes filled with fear.

"Kaito and Gakupo could find out, they will find out, one way or another. Then the word will spread, and..."

"They won't. If we are careful. Besides, who cares? I mean, our choices are our own, and it doesn't matter which we choose." I said, trying to ease his anxiety.

 _He's concerned about my reputation._

I looked around the room, and then remembered that it was illegal for there to be any photographic or video possession of anything in a restroom or lockeroom. In other words, as long as we were in a bathroom or lockeroom alone, there would be no one there to see the two of us together, and there would be no rigorous proof.

"If we do... anything, and if it's in here, after school, no one will know. And if Kaito or Gakupo film us or take pictures, we'll have the right to call the police."

He bit his lip, and took a deep breath.

"I guess... we could go out?"

I smiled reassuringly, and hugged him again. He flinched, not expecting this, but rested his chin on the top of my head.

After we ended our second embrace, we went back to our tutoring session, and finished it without any more trouble. We both left the school after saying goodbye, and I walked back home.

Down the street was a navy blue house with odd ornaments in the lawn. Stone statutes that looked like angels were in front of the house, and close to a nearby tree was a bird feeder.

In one of the windows, I could see the kitchen light on, and mother cooking something. Sadly, I didn't see a second person in the window, so it would just be me and mother tonight.

I walked inside and locked the door behind me, and put my backpack on the couch.

"Hi, Oliver!"

"Hi."

I'm the living room, I could smell a soup being made for dinner, and I walked to the kitchen, almost unaware that I was being almost enchanted by the smell of dinner.

"How's the tutoring going?" She asked, stirring the soup slowly in a large pot.

"Good, he's been making good progress." I responded, looking into the pot to see what soup she made today.

"What's his name again? It was something that started with an F..."

"Fukase?"

"Yeah! The boy with the red hair!"

She glanced at the recipe before back at me. I had the urge to tell her what me and Fukase did, but I knew that it wouldn't go well with her.

She came from a family that strongly believed in Christianity, and those practices were taught to me, though I never believed them as strongly as she did. But in both testaments, it is mentioned that homosexuality is sin. If I even mentioned that word, a fury of questions would come my way.

"Did anything else happen at school today?" She asked, completely clueless.

 _Whyyyyy..._

"No, it was otherwise a pretty normal day for me. So, when is dad coming home?"

I looked at one of the pictures that was held on the fridge by magnets. It was taken a few years ago at Christmas. Despite all the presents in the background, the tree, and my mom, the only person I looked at was father.

"Oliver, he just came here two months ago. He's not coming home until June." She replied, slightly exasperated.

I sighed woefully, and grabbed my backpack as I walked to my room.

My father was a Navy SEAL, and he could only come home every six months. The only times of the year he came home was during Christmas and at the beginning of summer.

I sat in my bed and picked up the framed picture on my nightstand. In the photo was me, mother, and father. He was still in his uniform and looked exhausted, but his smile said otherwise. Me and mother were standing with him at the lake, smiling and making silly faces.

 _I wonder what he's thinking right now..._

One thing that always worried me was if he cared about his job more than me. I understood that he couldn't come home until he's spent his six months at training, but it worried me. He had lots of experience, and we had plenty of money. Why couldn't he just apply for a local job instead of one so far away?

 _I'm just worrying over nothing. Besides, I have it easy compared to other kids, like Fukase._

What struggles does Fukase have to deal with? What were the gravity of those struggles?

Maybe this new relationship can help him forget about the horrible things he deals with at home. I may not know about what happened during that fire that had made it as traumatizing as it was, but I wanted to help.

I decided that it was time for me to get my clothes for tomorrow ready and take a shower. I dug through my closet and put a set of clothes on my nightstand, and then headed into the bathroom right next to my room.

 _This should ease my mind._ I thought, as I turned on the water and got out a fresh towel.

 ** _End of chapter 4._**

 **Hello readers! I'm sorry for the inconvenience, and that I had to go into a hiatus for this series. I got serious Writers Block, and I had quite a bit of homework to catch up on. Basically, this first quarter of 8th grade has been insane T.T at least I have Halloween to look forward to. I still don't know what to be for Halloween. Probably a vampire or cat? Something simple, since I need to dress up for the dance at our school too, even though I'll be volunteering (because the eighth graders run the dance at our school -_-).**

 **Besides that, I was also trying to find some info on Navy SEALS. I don't know if I got the info right, but please correct me if I did. I know that vocaloids aren't real, but I want this story to sound as realistic as possible.**

 **Anyways, thank you for reading chapter 4 of Romancing the Melody!**


	5. A new side

As I walked into the choir room, I rolled my eyes when I saw Kasane Teto fighting with Gakupo. He probably called her hair drills again.

"Why don't you do us all a favor and drill a hole for you to die in?" He laughed, avoiding her punches.

"You bastard!"

Our choir teacher tried to disperse the fighting, and Teto ended up with detention for trying to attack a student, and Gakupo got away with provoking and insulting her. As usual.

I grabbed a chair and sat in the back row. In the front row, I could see Oliver talking with Yohio.

 _I can't believe we're dating now!_

It was quite incredible, really. Who would've thought that we were both gay, and would confess to each other the same night?

So badly, I wanted to kiss him, or at least know how long I had held back. But if I did so suddenly, it would likely lead to a rejection.

I glared at Gakupo as he walked by Oliver, who gave him a venomous smirk.

 _I won't let that happen again._

After my sister dying in the fire, and knowing that Oliver was being bullied by that bastard, I didn't want him to get hurt again. I felt like his trusty knight by his side, a knight to protect and love him until I was no longer needed.

"Class, quiet down. Let's pull out our first piece, and we'll continue where we left off on measure fifty two..."

Like always, we did our usual routine in choir, but I couldn't stop looking at Oliver, and it seemed the same for him. He kept glancing behind to look at me, with an adorable smile on his face.

 _So cute!_

I suddenly felt something warm drip onto my thumb, and I realized it was blood.

 _I'm bleeding?_

Another droplet landed on the back of my hand, and then I came to a horrifying conclusion.

"Sh-!"

I nearly yelped a curse word, but I managed to close my mouth and run over to the box of tissues in the back of the classroom. In utter humiliation, I turned my back and tried to make as little noise as possible.

I couldn't believe I got a nosebleed, and just from Oliver's cute smile. How embarrassing.

I prayed (while cursing like a sailor) that Oliver didn't see as I cleaned up the rest of the blood, threw away the tissues, used some sanitizer, and went back to my spot to finish the song.

Once we finished, she started talking about solos and that she will be handing out opportunities to sign up next week so we can try out. I tried to focus on the board as she drew dates and the such, but Oliver kept looking back at me, giggling.

 _At least no one else knows about it, thank god I'm an outcast._

That was probably the only time I was truly thankful on the spot that I was an outcast. Otherwise rumors would be going across the school like wildfire.

And Oliver was the only person who knew about what happened, though I couldn't be sure if it would be a good thing or a bad thing.

I—I

"Fukase-sama!"

I turned around as Oliver ran up to me, though I was more focused on what he called me.

"'Sama'?"

"What's wrong with a nickname?"

"N-nothing..."

Before I could ask what was wrong, Oliver grabbed my hand and led me towards the restroom. He opened the door, and quickly checked to make sure that no one else was there. I was still confused with what he was trying to do.

"O-Oliver? What're you doing?"

He halted in the middle of the room and turned to me, the expression on his face telling me that what he was doing was something I should've known as well.

"Remember what you said last night? That if we did 'anything', we could do it in here as long as no one else was there and if no one knew about it?"

I nodded.

"Well, I thought that we could right now. It's technically our lunch break right now, so we don't have to make the bell."

"U-um..."

He pushed me up against the tile wall, but realized that he was still several inches shorter than me, and pouted. To gain a few extra inches, he grabbed a lost binder and stood on top of that, and was almost the same height as me.

"Don't you think this is a little fast? I mean, we've been dating for a couple of hours, twelve at most. Don't you think we should reconsider this?"

He giggled at that, but seemed to consider it. Though I wished to date him and thought of kissing him for a long time, I was never prepared to do it. And yet, here I was stuck in a situation where it actually could happen.

"Well, what did you think when you looked at me, huh? You got a nosebleed simply from looking at me, so you had to be thinking something suspicious."

"I-I thought you were cute!"

I didn't realize I said that until he smirked, and I could feel my cheeks fluster in humiliation. At least I didn't say something that could've been much worse.

"Hm... I'll keep that in mind."

He backed off and skipped to the door of the bathroom, where he pushed the door to exit.

"I was a little disappointed... but, we'll do it at one point, right?"

"I-I suppose... but, let's take this slow, okay? It would be a little weird to start kissing right away and out of nowhere."

His smirk widened as he replied, "True."

I—I

 _The last bell!_

Students hurried out of the halls as the merciful bell rang throughout the school, letting everyone know that they could go home.

Except for me, but I had an alternative.

"Hey, Fukase."

I flinched, and was not surprised to see Gakupo there, surprisingly without Kaito.

"I saw you with Oliver earlier, by the restroom."


End file.
